Window Replacement in Portland, Maine

Portland's housing is old enough that many homes still have original wood sashes, sometimes with storm windows added, sometimes not. Single-pane glass, worn sash cords and loose glazing let in cold air and wind-driven rain, and the upper floors of triple-deckers often have windows nobody has opened in years. Replacement can also fix egress: a bedroom window that is painted shut or too small to climb through is a real safety problem in a multi-family building.

Roughly three-quarters of the city's homes predate 1980, and in any house built before 1978 the federal EPA lead renovation rule applies whenever painted window parts are disturbed, which calls for lead-safe work practices and cleanup. Choices range from vinyl replacement windows that fit into the existing frame, to wood and clad units from Andersen, Marvin, Pella or Integrity when the original trim needs to stay. Double-hung units match most Portland facades; casements work in kitchens and tight spots. Inside a local historic district, window replacement on visible elevations goes through preservation review, which often looks at material, muntin pattern and how the new sash sits in the old opening, so plan that approval into the schedule.

Portland has roughly 36,600 housing units, and the American Community Survey estimates a median year built of 1946. About 46 percent predate 1940 and about 61 percent predate 1960, while only about 16 percent date from 1960 to 1979 and about 11 percent from 2000 or later. Owners occupy about 47 percent of occupied homes, and single-family detached houses make up only about 36 percent of the stock, so multi-unit buildings are the norm rather than the exception. After the Great Fire of 1866 the peninsula was rebuilt largely in Victorian and Italianate styles, and wood-framed triple-deckers fill much of the older residential grid. Off the peninsula, Deering and the outer neighborhoods run to capes, colonials and mid-century houses. The census also counts nearly 1,900 seasonal units, many of them island cottages in Casco Bay.

The city runs from the Old Port and its restored brick warehouses to wood-frame neighborhoods like Munjoy Hill, the West End, Parkside and East Bayside, then out to Deering Center, Rosemont, Riverton and North Deering. Stroudwater, at the meeting of the Stroudwater and Fore rivers, grew around a mast landing founded by Thomas Westbrook in 1727. The Deering Street district holds architect-designed houses from the second half of the nineteenth century. Portland also governs Peaks, Great Diamond, Little Diamond, Cushing and Cliff islands. Peaks, about three miles from downtown by Casco Bay Lines ferry, swells by thousands of people each summer.

Building permits in Portland go through the city's Permitting and Inspections Department, which handles permits, licensing and inspections in one office. A new deck is structural work and needs a building permit; ask the department whether a given roof, siding or window job needs one before work starts. Portland also has a strong historic preservation ordinance. Properties in local districts including the West End, India Street, Congress Street, Deering Street, Stroudwater and the Old Port waterfront need a certificate of appropriateness for exterior alterations, reviewed by preservation staff or the Historic Preservation Board. Waterfront and island lots may also fall under shoreland zoning.

A new window is only as good as the way it is set into the wall. Replacement windows go in either as inserts inside the existing frame or as full-frame units after the old frame comes out; the right choice depends on the condition of the frame, the trim you want to keep, and the siding around it. The site lists vinyl replacement windows and wood or clad units from Andersen, Marvin, Pella and Integrity, in double-hung, casement, picture, bay, sliding and awning styles.

• Each opening is measured and checked for rot in the sill, jambs and framing.
• Old sashes or whole frames come out; damaged wood is repaired before the new unit goes in.
• Units are set level, plumb and square, shimmed, and fastened as the manufacturer requires.
• Low-expansion foam and backer rod seal the gap without bowing the frame.
• Flashing, exterior trim or capping and interior casing are finished so the opening sheds water.

• Fog or condensation between the panes of insulated glass
• Sashes that stick, will not stay up, or let in drafts
• Soft or rotted sills and frames
• Single-pane glass or storm windows you take on and off every year
• Frost or ice on the inside of the glass in winter

• Number of windows, their sizes, and any custom shapes
• Vinyl versus wood or clad units, and the brand and series
• Insert versus full-frame replacement
• Glass package and grille options
• Interior and exterior trim work, and whether siding is open around the opening

Every job is priced from a free on-site visit. Typical ranges for the trade are on our window replacement page, and the details of this service are on the window replacement overview.

Back to the Portland exterior services overview, or see every town on our Cumberland County service areas page.